From Scale Specialties Office of Naval Intelligence Publications 208J -Far Eastern Small Craft and 233M Merchant Ship Shapes. This is volume I - Merchant and Military Vessels of World War II Reviewed. Norman Harms has obtained the rights to these publications and is putting them on CD-Rom for ease of transport and use. It is in the versatile Adobe Acrobat .pdf format - and Norm includes it on the CD just in case you don't already have it installed. I pulled up the files - which took a while on my old Pentium 200. They were well worth the wait! The information is as the U.S. Intelligence community perceived it during WWII. It is also the information that our Naval Commanders had in order to defeat the Japanese. Here's a listing of what's in each volume (both contained on a single CD)
ONI-208J - Minor Combatants, Passenger Vessels, Cargo Vessels, Barges, Fishing Vessels, Utility Vessels, Native Craft.
ONI-223M - Functions and Appearance, Passenger Types, Cargo Types, Engine-Aft Types, Wartime Functions, Structural Changes, Painting and Camouflage, Aerial Identification, Tonnage Computation, Design Trends, Estimation of Speed, Silhouettes... For example, I looked closely through the section on painting and camouflage (for obvious reasons). It showed the modeler or gamer everything he needed to paint and present a historically accurate looking ship, no matter what the scale. Very, very nicely done.
For modelers, historians, and anyone interested in the Navy - this is a superb start to a great collection. At only $40 plus shipping, this is a bargain - contact Norm for more details.
Pirates! and Taiko Rules from Flagship Games, Rod Thomson, P.O. Box 148; Alameda, CA 94501 or WWW www.flagshipgames.com or e-mail wargame@windstorm.stormnet.com. First is Pirates! - yes, the same name as the set of rules from Gauntlet Publications, but a completely different slant. These rules are more role-playing in nature and they are based on the superstitions of the period coming true. Well, based is not the right term - they are based on Pirate actions in the Caribbean (something we can all relate to), but they take into account the superstitions. For example, Navigators have a magic rating and can actually cast spells. Sure, the historian shudders, but don't!! Stop, relax, breathe, and read on. Looking at the abilities given and the spells cast - reef summoning, sea demon & whirlpool summoning, St. Elmo's Fire - these are all events which seemed to take place in that era. Sailors believed that these reefs came out of nowhere or that sometimes ships glowed. Very nicely interwoven. Captain's have special abilities, too - and this is necessary for the Pirate crew to succeed. These rules are meant to be fun, but are intricate enough to really throw some great events into the game, without the players recreating the rules. It is a superb effort and will make for many evenings of great fun. This a professionally done 91-page spiral bound package. These rules are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Another set that Rod produces are Taiko! Samurai Warfare During the age of the Country at War. These could be the best overall Samurai rules that I've seen (and I have seen almost all the sets currently on the market - I used to sell Two Dragons samurai figures). These will allow you to put your figures to good use. These rules are done as a labor of love - they educate the gamer, maintain the complexity of the period, and make for a playable game. Samurai rules are so much more than hacking away with a Katana. Leadership, loyalty, creating an army, and directing it were incredibly difficult during the period. Rod does a superb job putting this info into a 62-page spiral bound publication. Again, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Flagship Games' rules are professionally produced. They contain numerous pictures of games in action, as well as a number of original illustrations (done by a professional - no stick-men here). I can't recommend these highly enough - If you are like me and like both the Japanese Shogun and Pirate periods, you must have these rules.
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